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County profile California Metropolitan

Black health in Alameda County, California

161,000

Black residents (ACS)

9.63%

Of county population

$69,400

Median household income, Black

5.80%

Uninsured, Black residents

Alameda County has roughly 160,000 Black residents, concentrated in Oakland and unincorporated north Alameda. Oakland's Fairfax District was the commercial heart of Black Oakland through the twentieth century; the Black Panther Party's People's Free Medical Clinic in Oakland (1969-1975) pioneered the community health centre model later codified in federal FQHC funding. La Clinica de la Raza, Roots Community Health Center, and Highland Hospital (Alameda Health System) remain the safety-net anchors for the county's Black residents.

UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland (the former Oakland Children's Hospital) is the county's only pediatric level-I trauma centre and hosts the state-funded Alameda County Public Health Black Infant Health program.

Headline outcomes

Race-stratified county-level figures pulled from CDC WONDER small-area estimates, the annual County Health Rankings, and the CDC NVSS state/county life tables. County values with cell counts below CDC suppression thresholds are marked as data pending.

Life expectancy (Black)

76.80 yrs

At birth, CDC NVSS Small-Area LE

Infant mortality (Black)

9.00

Per 1,000 live births, CDC WONDER

CVD mortality (Black)

315.80

Age-adjusted per 100k, CDC WONDER I00-I99

County Health Rankings

#11

Overall rank in California (lower = better)

Policy context in Alameda

California has adopted Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act, which gives low-income Black adults in this county a direct pathway to primary-care and prescription coverage. Medicaid in this state covers doula services. Postpartum Medicaid coverage extends for 12 months after delivery — the federal recommended standard, in place here.

Where to get help in Alameda

Find Black health providers & resources in Alameda

Black clinicians in Alameda

Directory filtered to this county & state

Federally Qualified Health Centers

Sliding-scale FQHCs across California

Crisis & support resources

988, postpartum helplines, Black-serving crisis lines

California state profile

Statewide context, Medicaid policy, all 10 health facets

References & primary sources

  1. Demographics: US Census ACS 5-year 2019–2023, Tables B03002 (race), B01003 (total population), S1903 (median income), B27010B (uninsured by race).
  2. Mortality and life expectancy: CDC WONDER county-level Multiple Cause of Death and Underlying Cause of Death, pooled 2020–2022; CDC NVSS Small-Area Life Expectancy Estimates, 2016–2020 release.
  3. County Health Rankings: University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute & Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2024 release.
  4. HRSA shortage-area designations: HRSA HPSA Find and MUA/P Find, current as of 2025.
  5. Rural-Urban Continuum Codes: USDA Economic Research Service, 2023 release.

Data refreshed:

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